Brief introduction of Yao nationality

There are 159328 Mulao people, mainly distributed in the northern mountainous areas of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, and 90% of them live in Luocheng Mulao Autonomous County. The word "Yao Lao" means "mother" in Mandarin.

Molao language belongs to Dong Shui language branch of Zhuang Dong language family of Sino-Tibetan language family, which is very close to Maonan language and Dong language. Due to the close contact between the Mulao people and the Han and Zhuang people, the Mulao language has absorbed a large number of Chinese and Zhuang words. Most people are fluent in Chinese, and some people can speak Zhuang language.

Moro people are mainly engaged in agriculture, mainly rice and corn. Farming techniques, crop varieties and production tools are basically the same as those of the nearby Han and Zhuang nationalities. Mulao mountain township is known as "coal township", and coal mining has become an important part of production and life.

Yaolaoshan Township is a charming landscape gallery, with mountains like swords and water like silks and satins, and is known as "Small Guilin".

Yao history

Mulao nationality is an ancient nationality in China. Since Wei and Jin Dynasties, it has been called "Mulao" and "Mulao" in history books, and it has been included in Liao and Ling. According to historical records and legends, there were Molao people living in Luocheng, Guangxi at the latest in Yuan Dynasty or early Ming Dynasty. Their nation calls itself "Ling" and "Jin", while Zhuang people call it "Bujin" and Han people call it "Mulao". After the founding of New China, according to the national will, it was collectively called Yao Lao. The area where Moro people live belongs to the rocky mountain area, where mountains are stacked, peaks are like forests, valleys are densely covered, the soil is barren, irrigation and transportation of farmland are extremely inconvenient, and economic development is difficult. In recent decades, with the continuous construction of water conservancy projects, the irrigation area is getting bigger and bigger, and the grain output is increasing. The mountainous area where Yao people live is rich in coal, which is called coal city, and coal mining is their important economic pillar.

Yaolao music

The Mulao nationality has a population of more than 94,000, and most of them live in Luocheng Mulao Autonomous County, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Most people are fluent in Chinese and believe in Buddhism and Taoism, heaven and earth, and all kinds of ghosts and gods with real names. Almost every Yao family has a songbook, and every village has a singer. There are various forms, such as impromptu folk songs, stories and satirical songs.

This is a famous Yao folk song, with a narrow range, close to colloquial melody, simple and natural.

Yaolaozu etiquette

Yao old people celebrate festivals.

? The old Yao people used to believe in polytheism and had many festivals. There are festivals almost every month of the year except October and November. The triennial "Fan Yi" Festival, also known as the "Happy Festival", is even more grand. The Yifan Festival is held on an auspicious day after beginning of winter. The main purpose of "relying on grain" is to make a wish to our ancestors, pray for the safety of people and animals, and reap a bumper harvest. The whole village danced with lions and dragons, singing and dancing, and singing opera for three days in a row. Now it is rare, because it affects production. Every holiday, in addition to various celebrations, every household should buy rich food. Such as chicken, duck, fish, meat and glutinous rice, and different seasonal meals can also be made according to the season. Glutinous rice products are the main food for various festivals and festive days. Marriage, full moon for children, etc. Should be made? But also to make tofu and hold a banquet.

? Most of the sacrificial activities of Yao elderly people are held in festivals. In the past, during major festivals, the whole village or several villages held collective sacrificial ceremonies, and the sacrifices to the gods were different according to different festivals. Every time you offer sacrifices to the gods, the cost of the sacrifices used will be shared equally. After the sacrificial activities, the sacrifices are distributed equally by households, which is called "divided painting". Personal income can be used to worship ancestors after returning home, and then used as holiday food. On April 8th, "Birthday of Cow", let the cow have a rest, prepare chicken, duck, wine and meat, steam glutinous rice to worship the "Niubi God" and give Niu Yi a group of glutinous rice.

Marriage custom of Yao nationality

Young men and women of Yao nationality have always had the freedom to fall in love. Besides festivals, * * * and acquaintances in the market, the main ways of falling in love are singing songs, answering questions and making friends. The season of "going uphill" is spring March and autumn August. Young people are dressed in costumes, and men and women go to the market to find partners to sing. After finding the satisfied opponents, we invited them to start duets on the beautiful hillside lawn, asking questions and answering questions with songs as the medium, satisfying each other and giving each other tokens. Finally, let the matchmaker inform the parents to determine the wedding date.

The matchmaker was asked by the man first. If the woman's family agreed, she would give her daughter's birthday to the matchmaker and hand it over to the man. After receiving the woman's horoscope, the man's parents thought it was consistent with his son's horoscope, and the marriage was basically completed.

The way of picking up relatives varies slightly from place to place. The most interesting thing is "sending ten sisters to marry". One month after the bride went through the door, girls of the same age in the same village volunteered to form ten bridesmaids to be sisters in the unmarried bride's house, and stayed with the bride day and night to help her make new shoes, sew wedding clothes and prepare makeup. On the wedding day, the ten sisters and the bride dressed exactly the same, wearing the same "lover's shoes" and "wedding clothes", holding the same "sister umbrella", cutting the same hairstyle, tying the same braid, and even behaving very similarly. If it weren't for relatives and friends, I really don't know who the bride is and who the best man is. When we arrived at the groom's house, eleven girls came into the house together, which was very lively.

On the day of picking up relatives, many places have the custom of setting up "Song cards". When the man and his party visit relatives in the woman's village, they must sing and answer questions before they can enter the bride's house through the "song card". Similarly, when the woman goes to the man's village to see off the wedding procession, she has to answer a question song before she can enter the groom's house. Sometimes people who sing from morning till night crowd around to watch the fun. Finally, if you can't answer, ask yourself, or your parents will come forward to sing "Reconciliation Song" and announce the end of "Hurdle Song". In a long conversation, the host should provide delicious food and drinks to the guests to ensure that the guests are energetic and full of emotions.

After the bride enters the room, there will be "noisy karaoke bars" in many places, that is, a competition song will be put inside and outside the bridal chamber, and men and women will sing and answer. When * * *, laughter and laughter blend into one, becoming an excellent place for young people to display their talents.

Yao clothing

The costumes of the Mulao nationality all have their own characteristics, but due to their long-term coexistence and mutual influence, they are basically the same as those of the nearby Han and Zhuang nationalities in some aspects.

The costumes of Yao nationality have always maintained the characteristics of ancient servants 60 or 70 years ago. For example, women's blouses are very short, only to the waist, and all the sleeves are embroidered with scales. Wearing a pleated skirt and hooked shoes. Men wear double-breasted clothes and both men and women cover their heads with long handkerchiefs. Yao people's clothes are generally dark blue. In the past, most of them were self-spinning, self-weaving and self-sewing. In modern times, after modification, it is not much different from the clothes of the local Han and Zhuang nationalities. Men wear double-breasted jackets and trousers, while old people wear pipa double-breasted jackets; Generally wear straw sandals, not many feet. In the past, girls used to braid their hair and tie it in a bun after they got married, but now most people have their hair cut. Jewelry includes silver earrings, bracelets and rings.

Yaolaozu catering

Most Moro people are used to eating three meals by solar eclipse, porridge for breakfast, porridge left over from breakfast for lunch, rice and rich dishes for dinner. In busy farming season, porridge is usually eaten for breakfast, and lunch and dinner are dinner. Is sweet potato one of the main supplementary foods for Laos? Soybeans are generally fried and cooked before eating, and are used to make tofu during holidays and weddings. Every autumn, every household makes twenty or thirty Jin of bean paste with porridge.

Old Yao people always like cold food. After the food is cooked, it should be cooled before eating. If you can't finish one meal, you don't have to heat the next one. Usually drink raw water. Moro people are used to cooking meat "white?" That is, put large pieces of pork or slaughtered whole chickens and ducks in water and cook them until they turn white, then cut them into small pieces and add salt or dip them in salt water when eating. Fish is often fried and beef is often fried alone.

Yao people like to eat hot and sour food, and every family has acid jars to pickle all kinds of pickles, such as sour beans and garlic. Folk breakfast and lunch are only served with hot and sour vegetables. Vegetables are used to boiling in water first, and then adding salt. Is the local specialty coal sand jar a unique drinking utensil for cooking rice, vegetables and tea?

The typical foods of Yao nationality are: tofu dishes; White steamed bread is a traditional snack of Moro nationality, which is made of cooked glutinous rice.

Yaolao construction

In the Yao inhabited area, the mountains are undulating, and the Wuyang River and Longjiang River pass through them. In the crisscross of Dashishan and Tushan hills, there are canyon flat dams with different vertical and horizontal dimensions. Most Moro people live in mountainous or semi-mountainous areas, and build villages by mountains and rivers. ? Most of the houses in Laos are brick walls, tile roofs and low-rise buildings. No matter on the flat ground or on the slope, the foundation should be built as a platform 30 to 60 cm above the ground. The foundation of the wall is made of refractory bricks. People live on the ground floor, and upstairs is the barn. The most prominent feature of folk houses is that they are heated and cooked by ground stoves, which has a history of more than 400 years.

Floor stoves are built on both sides of the door of the hall or kitchen. First, dig a hole in the ground, build a stove with bricks in the hole, and put a big water altar next to the stove. The jar mouth and underground stove mouth are slightly higher than the ground to avoid sewage inflow. Build a coal pit in front of the furnace and cover it with a movable plate. Except for the dusty oven door, the periphery of the stove and jar is filled with mud and the surface has to be plastered with concrete. The stove will not go out all day, and there will always be hot water in the water tank. In addition to cooking in a pot at any time, winter is like a ground heating device, which makes the room comfortable and warm. Especially in the wet and rainy season, the food and clothes at home will not be moldy. On holidays, it is very convenient for family and friends to eat "hot pot" around the ground stove. Because? The Lao nationality produces anthracite, so it is very common to use ground stoves.

Customs of Yao nationality

Yao Lao zu-taboo

The taboo of Yao nationality is: don't say unlucky words when digging coal; Don't step on the threshold when entering the door; Don't eat cat meat, snake meat, and in some places, don't eat dog meat or pig heart.

Yaolaojiao

The old Yao people mainly believe in Taoism. I also believe in Buddhism. The old Yao people used to believe in polytheism and had many festivals. Most of the sacrificial activities of Yao elderly people are held in festivals. In the past, during major festivals, the whole village or several villages held collective sacrificial ceremonies, and the sacrifices to the gods were different according to different festivals. Every time you offer sacrifices to the gods, the cost of the sacrifices used will be shared equally. After the sacrificial activities, the sacrifices are distributed equally by households, which is called "divided painting". Personal income can be used to worship ancestors after returning home, and then used as holiday food. On April 8th, "Birthday of Cow", let the cow have a rest, prepare chicken, duck, wine and meat, steam glutinous rice to worship the "Niubi God" and give Niu Yi a group of glutinous rice.